


Retired, Not Dead (Yet)

by Raine_Wynd



Category: Pacific Rim (Movies), Pacific Rim: The Black (Cartoon)
Genre: Cherry-Picking Canon, Foul Language, Friendship, Gen, Ghost drift, Introspection, Minor Character Death, My head canon is showing, Pre-Canon, Solo Drift, Tenacity - Freeform, referenced homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-20 22:00:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30011571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raine_Wynd/pseuds/Raine_Wynd
Summary: A look at Herc Hansen before and during the events of Pacific Rim: the Black.
Relationships: Hercules Hansen & Original Male Character(s), Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 15





	Retired, Not Dead (Yet)

**Author's Note:**

> I thought I was done with this universe. Then came the anime and... here this is. Hope y'all like it!

“You sure you want me back?” Herc asked his companion as they stood on the overlook before the newly christened Striker Berserker.

Dressed in jeans, a PPDC hoodie, and a t-shirt advertising a rock band that was ‘classic’ when Herc had been born, Jake Pentecost looked nothing like the high-ranking jaeger pilot he was. “You sure you want to be out there sitting on your ass when the kaiju are back and worse than before? You’re retired, not dead.”

Herc barked a rueful laugh. “You sounded like your father there.”

Jake inclined his head and grinned widely. “Did it work?”

“Always figured your sister would be the one to ask me.”

“She’s busy being marshal.” Jake hesitated. “Don’t suppose you know where to find Raleigh Becket?”

Herc smiled. “If your sister hasn’t told you where her copilot is, then that’s between them and I’m not going to get in the middle of that.”

Jake’s face fell. “Damn it, knew I shouldn’t have made that bet with Nate.”

Herc laughed and patted Jake’s shoulder. “Never bet against someone who’s been in your brain. Don’t you know that by now?

Ruefully, Jake admitted, “I should, but Nate riles me up and I forget.” He shook his head. “What do you think of your new jaeger?”

“She looks good. Damn good.” Herc let out a brief sigh as the memories washed through him. “You don’t need an old man like me piloting a jaeger. Been twenty years since I’ve been a pilot.”

“Yes, we do.” Jake’s voice was firm.

“How bad is it out there? I heard rumors we have a rogue drone jaeger.”

“It evolved; it’s part kaiju now,” Jake admitted, his reflection grim. “Doesn’t seem to care who it fights – kaiju or us – but it’ll kill. Best not to engage if it shows up.”

Herc hated that declaration. It meant he and his next copilot were already fighting with one hand tied behind their backs, as far as he could tell. “And the rest of the rumors of more evolved kaiju?”

“True. We don’t know the extent of it. Mako wants to see if we can control the breaches, since they seem localized for the moment.”

Herc studied the younger man’s resigned expression. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“As far as we can tell, they’re mostly in central Australia, in the old mining towns. There are calls to abandon the continent, but we know kaiju can swim, so….”

“We aren’t going to give up the fucking country for the kaiju,” Herc swore, furious. “That’s not worth everyone we’ve sacrificed for this shit.”

Jake held his gaze. “You aren’t going to get an argument from me on that score, but I’d like to point out that if it’s the rest of the world or us….”

Herc curled his lip and fought for calm. When he could speak without bursting into a furious tirade, he told Jake, “I have always hated that argument.”

Jake spread his hands wide. “I got nothing else. You in or not?”

“In, damn it, or else I’d have told you to fuck off when you stepped off that jumphawk two days ago. Just… give me a moment to process. Who the fuck gave the kaiju access to jaeger drones?”

“Dr. Geizler was a consultant for the corporation that built jaeger drones.”

Herc stared at Jake. “Oh, I knew I should’ve locked him up when I had the chance, but he tracked Chuck’s escape pod, so I didn’t. That bastard.”

“My sister said something similar. Also, from what our current scientists are telling us, the kaiju would’ve evolved anyway. Just…things got sped up a bit, apparently, and we need someone with experience at strategy. Mako’s good at being organized, but we need you.”

Herc blew out a heavy breath. He had expected the worst, but this was a new level of worse. For a moment, he felt strangely glad not to be facing it with his son at his side.

 _You only say that because you don’t want me dead_ , the Ghost Drift between him and Chuck whispered.

 _Love you too, kid,_ Herc sent back.

“Come on, let’s go meet your copilot, see if you two can drift together.”

Herc looked at the shiny new jaeger one last time before turning to the son of the man he’d once followed to an apocalypse. “Long as it’s not someone who thinks I’m some kind of hero,” he told Jake gruffly.

“I refuse to be responsible for anyone else’s opinions.”

Herc snorted. “Uh huh, sure. Let’s see who you think is a perfect fit for me so I can kick their ass.”

It took three days of testing before Herc matched with an American named Brett Cameron. At thirty-nine, he was the oldest of the candidates; he had been a jaeger technician since joining the PPDC as a jaeger pilot candidate at eighteen. When Herc checked Brett’s stats after their first successful Drift, he discovered Brett had been one of the Jaeger Academy’s top candidates until he had requested to be transferred out of the pilot track.

“Why?” Herc asked his new copilot later that day.

Seated in his quarters, Brett looked at him. He was the same height as Herc, with a broader frame. His medium-brown hair needed a haircut, and he kept brushing his bangs back unconsciously. “My copilot-to-be was a homophobic asshole, and the company he kept made it clear that I had more to fear from them than the kaiju.”

“You had resources. The PPDC doesn’t tolerate that abuse.”

Brett snorted. “Resources and official channels mean shit when it’s someone in your brain and you know that.”

“Then that’s on the Academy cadre,” Herc began, furious on Brett’s behalf.

Brett held up a hand. “Look, it was years ago. You try deciding the rest of your life when you’re eighteen and don’t believe anyone’s going to believe you. I traded safety for not having to wage war every hour. Yes, I should’ve said something, and I did – when I knew that bastard couldn’t come after me and fuck with my brain. I don’t regret it. Means I’m alive now to be your copilot.”

The impassioned speech calmed Herc’s rising fury. He knew the regulations – but he also remembered being eighteen and in a military environment. Regulations were sometimes useless words on paper when someone faced a person threatening bodily and mental harm. Herc had no doubt that Brett had felt threatened enough to choose a strategic retreat. “For which I’m grateful. I’m glad we matched – and while I would’ve Drifted with anyone, I’m glad it’s you.”

“You should’ve heard the gossip when Marshal Mori announced we were bringing you back. Some of the candidates thought you were dead.”

“Retired, not dead. Not yet.” Herc met Brett’s eyes. “And no, Chuck isn’t dead. He’s pissed off the kaiju aren’t.” The ghost Drift between his son and him tugged at Herc and he ignored the pull. “He’s just not physically able to pilot a jaeger anymore.”

“Surprised he hasn’t shown up in the news bitching about it,” Brett murmured.

“That would reveal where he is to the kaiju cultists,” Herc reminded his new copilot. “And that’s not a risk either of us want to take.”

Brett grimaced and crossed his arms. “Sad day when we’re trying to save a world some religious fanatics want to surrender to monsters that care little about how they’re being worshipped as gods.”

“Get some sleep; it’s going to be a long day tomorrow. We have our first drop in the morning.”

Brett nodded. “You, too, Herc.”

Five years of piloting later, Brett had become like a son to Herc. At seventy-five, Herc was the PPDC’s oldest jaeger pilot ever in its history. Striker Berserker set new records for kaiju killed. Brett kept himself fit between missions, often challenging Herc to keep up, in a way that sometimes painfully reminded Herc of Chuck. Still, they soldiered on until the fateful day when Brett’s heart unexpectedly gave out during a crucial moment in battle.

Herc screamed in pain as he felt the Drift snap shut. Striker Berserker’s AI compensated automatically, switching to a mode that put the jaeger upright. Herc felt more than heard the AI announce, “Ranger Cameron is dead. The kaiju is closing. Would you like me to arm weapons in defense?”

Herc forced the pain and grief aside. The marshal’s orders were to initiate the Black protocol or die trying – and Herc had come too far for too long to die. He punched in the code. “Solo pilot override, Ranger Hercules Hansen authorization Delta Tango Charlie one nine nine.”

“Solo pilot override accepted.”

Fifteen minutes later, Herc defeated the kaiju and set off the protocol. When the dead kaiju landed on Striker, forcing both to fall, Herc let the fall happen. Then he blacked out.

How long he lay there without moving, Herc could not say.

 _Get your ass up, old man,_ Chuck screamed through the Ghost Drift. _Get your ass up and out of there._

Herc opened his eyes. The AI beeped at him. “The Black has been initiated,” the AI reminded him.

“Send last fight and then cut automatic transmission to PPDC,” Herc told the jaeger. “We’re on our own.”

“Yes, Ranger Hansen.”

Herc sighed deeply, then shoved the dead kaiju off his jaeger. Once that was done, he asked the AI, “Status report.”

“Acid from the kaiju is seeping into my joints and we are at 55% power. Continued solo Drift is not advised.”

Herc swore. The nearest evacuation point was over 2,500 kilometers away in either direction from where he was. Acid from the kaiju would rot the hydraulic connections and the steel faster than the power drain could keep up. Staying put was not an option in Herc’s head, but neither was giving up, either.

“Let’s see how far we get with what we got,” Herc told his jaeger’s AI.

_The official PPDC record states that Striker Berserker was found outside of Brisbane, over two thousand kilometers away from its last known position. Ranger Brett Cameron’s body was recovered and given a hero’s burial. Senior Ranger Herc Hansen is still listed missing in action._

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback (kudos, comments, constructive criticism, blathering about head canon for this show) always welcome!


End file.
